One Day 4-H is about giving back to communities

Oct. 12 is the official day, but public service will be given throughout the month

In a previous One Day 4-H, the Marion County 4-H Club’s mission was to install some much-needed playground equipment at Kelly Park in Jefferson. But rain made dirt and concrete work impossible, so the club, supervised by Paulette Cooper, County Extension Agent-Prairie View for 4-H in Marion County, since retired, had the club members plant flowers at the site instead. (Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service photo by Robert Burns)

Writer: Robert Burns, 903-834-6191, rd-burns@tamu.edu

OVERTON – One Day 4-H is simple but elegant: It’s about giving back to the community, said a Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service specialist.

One Day 4-H this year will be on Oct. 12, said Dr. Montza Williams, AgriLife Extension 4-H and youth development regional specialist, Overton. In previous One Day 4-H events, hundreds of Texas 4-H clubs and thousands of members have donated tens of thousands of hours of community service.

“The message is, ‘Dear community, thank you for being there for us, Now let us help you,’” Williams said.

The guidelines for One Day 4-H projects are intentionally left open so clubs can respond to local needs, he said.

“They do a variety of things,” Williams said. “They look around the communities and see what is needed. They may choose to identify charitable organizations that are doing things already that they can partner with and either join with them or help raise money for those organizations or they may identify something new and different.”

Although Oct. 12 is the official day, if a club has a scheduling conflict, they may do their community service any day in October, he said.

Throughout the state more than 40,000 Texas 4-H’ers, adult volunteers and friends have committed nearly 300,000 volunteer hours to this year’s One Day 4-H, Williams said.

One Day 4-H projects vary in the 22 East Texas counties of AgriLife Extension District 5 which Williams serves. A sampling includes:

— In Gregg County, the Shiloh 4-H Club will be assisting in cleanup and recycling efforts for the White Oak School nature trail. The Spring Hill Club has collected fabric, sewed tote bags and collected supplies, and will fill the bags with essential items to give to foster children when placed in a new home.

— In Smith County, the Rose Capital 4-H Club will be at the Barnes and Noble bookstore for a senior citizen/military family support drive. Also, in Smith County, the Venture 4-H Club with be working with Tyler Type One Foundation to raise awareness of diabetes.

— In Angelina County, the 4-H Horse Club will be collecting toiletry and hygiene items for a low-income hotel that does not supply those items to the residents.

— In Cherokee County, Footbridge 4-H Club will be at the Brookshire Brothers’ store in Rusk collecting non-perishable food in a drive for the local food pantry.

— In Upshur County, the Circle V 4-H Club, will be at the Pritchett Volunteer Fire Department washing fire trucks.

— The Wood County 4-H Club will assist local “Friends of the Arboretum” with an annual plant sale.